Meredith News Feb 2021

20 MEREDITH and DISTRICT NEWS
MAN
COOK
EAT
How does your Pumpkin Grow?
Steve Duffy
Although it has been a very cool and wet Summer,
there is still lots of warm weather ahead to give your
Giant Pumpkin time to put on the pounds.
Remember they will thrive with plenty of compost
and manure. It is nearly time to cull the smaller ones.
This will give your plants the ability to pump all that
goodness into your chosen specimens. Leave only
one per plant. And watch ‘em grow!
At this rate, it will be well into March or even April
before we can bring our Pumpkins down to Meredith
Primary School for judging. We will let you know
where and when next month. Meanwhile, keep an eye
on your champion with both water and feed.
Good luck to all you growers!
Good gardening Steve Duffy
William James Reid at
Woodbourne.
(In December 2020 we visited our granddaughter, Eliza
Emmlin at Calindary Station in the Western Section of
NSW where she has been a Governess to two boys for the
past three years. After talking with Lachie and Hayley,
the owners of Calindary and doing some research we
discovered that Calindary was once a paddock in a much
larger station called Yancannia that had been taken up by
William James Reid who had lived at Meredith previous
to taking up the isolated land in outback NSW.
Marg Cooper)
Following is the story of William James Reid and the
property.
Written by Bob Reid, great grandson of WJ Reid.
William James Reid brought his 18 year-old bride,
Elizabeth Elliott Armstrong to the original timber home
on Woodbourne. As more of their family of nine children
were born, WJ Reid arranged for three rooms to be added
to the front of the house. The additions were made of
bluestone and roofed with slate, probably in the late
1850’s. Verandas were added to the front and sides, and a
detached kitchen was added to the rear.
William James Reid was born on a farm near Letterkenny
in County Donegal, Ireland and arrived in Melbourne in
July 1841 with a cousin and another distant relation. He
was only 19 years old and had less than £50 in his pocket.
He worked as a shepherd, general servant and shearer
around Geelong, Drysdale and Bellarine. As he was a
staunch Presbyterian of sober habits, he received a lot of
insults and some mistreatment from his fellow workers
who were mostly hard drinking assigned servants.
After about 18 months he was engaged by John
Armstrong of Bush Station, whom he had originally met
at church, to tutor the 13 Armstrong children. He stayed
there for three years and during the time he invested his
savings in some land and a small flock of sheep in the
Goulburn Valley district in partnership with two relations.
This venture failed although WJ Reid was able to salvage
£120. He left Bush Station after three years and a chance
meeting with Somerville Learmonth of the well-known
sheep breeding family, resulted in his appointment as
overseer on the Learmonth’s Buninyong property. After
two years he was appointed to manage Learmonth’s
Wycheproof Station where he stayed for four years. WJ
Reid was given leave to run 2000 wethers on Wycheproof
during his last year there, and he sold these for meat on
the gold diggings at a substantial profit.
Alexander Wilson, one of the brothers who established
Woodbourne [No2], PB No 302 in 1844, sold the 14,000-
acre station and 6,000 sheep to WJ Reid for £5,400 in late
1852.
Reid paid £1000 cash with the remainder to be paid over
three years and took delivery in January 2, 1853. When
he had a home of his own he felt free to marry Elizabeth